team_2fandomcom-20200213-history
Blues
Origins The blues is a style of music with lyrics that are traditionally filled with tales of suffering, emotion and loneliness, originating with the African-American slaves (BBC 2014). The genre has foundations as far back as the 17th century when slaves where first transported to the United States, bringing with them unique instruments and music style. From the first published songs in 1867 to the first recorded blues in 1917 and through the development of Folk Blues, Rhythm and Blues and Electric Blues in the early 20th century, this style of music has developed to become a major style and influence on the music industry today (Weissman 2004, p. 5). Origins-1970 After the popularity of the blues in the early 20th century with artists such as Charley Patton, Muddy Waters, Richard Johnson and B.B. King. With the uprising of other styles which dominated the music industry, there was a significant period where classic blues itself took a back seat and styles that derived from classic blues emerged, these include: -Delta Blues -Chicago and Combo Blues -Electric Blues -Rhythm and Blues -Soul music It wasn’t until the 1960s that there was a resurgence of classic blues influences in the popular music scene (Carlin et al. 2005, p. xvii). The next generation of blues artists surfaced in the 1960s such as Robert Jr. Lockwood and Johnny Shines who although branched out into jazz and delta styles, brought back an element of classic blues (Weissman 2004, p. 122) 1970-1980 The 1970s saw the rise of a the Blues-Rock movement where the blues, mostly listened to by African-American communities, broke its way into mainstream music charts with the formation of interracial bands and white artists performing covers of early blues music (Weissman 2004, p.110). The resurgence of the blues influence was not only felt in the United States, even as far away as the United Kingdom, up and coming artists such as Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton were buying blues records and integrating its styles with their own. Groups were requesting blues artists to open for them at their shows and tour with them, bringing the blues to crowds who had not previously heard it and highlighting the influence that it has had on modern music (Carlin et al. 2005, p. xx). 1970-1980 The 1970s saw the rise of a the Blues-Rock movement where the blues, mostly listened to by African-American communities, broke its way into mainstream music charts with the formation of interracial bands and white artists performing covers of early blues music (Weissman 2004, p.110). The resurgence of the blues influence was not only felt in the United States, even as far away as the United Kingdom, up and coming artists such as Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton were buying blues records and integrating its styles with their own. Groups were requesting blues artists to open for them at their shows and tour with them, bringing the blues to crowds who had not previously heard it and highlighting the influence that it has had on modern music (Carlin et al. 2005, p. xx). 1980-1990 The 1980s saw blues artist begin to gain popularity within blues charts but also pop charts with artists such as Robert Cray, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Bonnie Rait (Penney 2014). Some of the releases included: · -Stevie Ray Vaughan – Texas, Flood '' · -Robert Cray – ''Strong Persuader · -Bonnie Rait – Nick of Time Stevie Ray Vaughan’s ‘''Texas Flood''’, was an album release which was popular mainly within blues circles and music charts. Robert Cray and Bonnie Rait broke into the mainstream pop charts with the singles named above (Weissman 2004, p. 130). 1990-Today Over the last twenty years there has been a significant push to recognise the achievements and influence that blues has had on the music industry. The Blues Foundation is an organisation that funds up and coming artists and families of blues artists who have passed away. In addition they have initiated a hall of fame to formally recognise the most influential blues artists (The Blues Foundation 2013). The blues culture is very much alive in today’s music scene, many artists have emerged who have tried to recapture the traditional acoustic blues themes from the early 20th century. These artists include: · -Ben Harper · -Otis Taylor · -Guy Davis · -Alvin Youngblood Hart There are a number of blues music festivals and events held even in Australia which attract crowds from all around the world. Bluesfest, held in Byron Bay NSW, is the largest blues festival in Australia, attracted a crowd of over 104 000 people (Bluesfest 2014). References BBC, 2014, Blues, ''BBC,viewed 03 April 2015, http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/music/popular_music/blues2.shtml Byron Bay Bluesfest, 2015, ''Bluesfest Byron Bay 2014 - Artist Highlights, ''08 January, viewed 03 April 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMuzjE7UMek King of Delta Blues 2011, '''Robert Johnson - King of Delta Blues' ''image Alinas awesome blog, viewed 03 April 2015 http://alinablogthoughts.blogspot.com.au/2011/10/about-robert-johnson.html Morganfield, M 2012, ''Muddy Waters and The Rolling Stones - Baby Please Don't Go - Live at Checkerboard Lounge, ''02 July, viewed 03 April 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3Or7huOK7o Carlin, R, Morrison, C, Weissman, D 2005, ''Blues, Infobase Publishing, New York. Penney, DK, 2014, A'' Short Blues History, ''History of Rock, viewed 03 April 2015, http://www.history-of-rock.com/blues.htm The Blues Foundation 2013, Mission, ''The Blues Foundation, viewed 03 April 2015, http://www.blues.org/mission/ Themusic.com, 2014, ''Bluesfest 2014, Street Press Australia, viewed 03 April 2015, http://www.blues.org/mission/ '' Weissman, D 2004, ''Blues: The Basics, Taylor and Francis, London. Category:Origins Category:Origins-1970 Category:1970-1980 Category:1980-1990 Category:1990-2000 Category:2000-Today